I find the term "battle groups" misleading. At the European Council in Helsinki in 1999, member states set a headline goal that by 2003, co-operating together and voluntarily, they would be able to deploy rapidly and then sustain forces capable of the full range of Petersberg Tasks as set out in the Amsterdam treaty. These tasks range from humanitarian, rescue, peacekeeping and crisis management operations, including peacemaking. This included inter alia a capability to provide rapid response elements, available and deployable at high readiness. The EU’s ambition to be able to respond rapidly to emerging crises is a key objective of the development of the European Security and Defence Policy. Having learned from historical experiences in the Balkans and Africa, the EU wants to be able to react faster when crises develop. Last year this was illustrated by the EU’s first autonomous military operation conducted in Bunia in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The operation, undertaken at the request of the UN Secretary General and deployed in rapid circumstances, was successful in contributing to the stabilisation of the security environment and the improvement of humanitarian conditions in Bunia.
During his visit to Dublin on 14 and 15 October, the UN Secretary General, Mr. Kofi Annan, underlined the extent to which he believes regional organisations, such as the EU, can contribute to the UN's requirements in crisis management. At the Forum on Europe on 14 October, Mr. Annan specifically welcomed the development of EU capabilities in the context of European Security and Defence Policy. He stressed how important strengthened EU capacities, in particular rapid deployment capabilities, are to the UN. The following day, at an event in McKee Barracks, Mr. Annan paid tribute to Ireland's contributions over the years to the UN. He also highlighted Ireland's key role during our EU Presidency term in promoting co-operation between the EU and the UN in crisis management, and in particular the possible use of EU rapid response elements to support UN peacekeeping operations.
Given our long tradition of participation on UN peacekeeping operations, Ireland can make a positive contribution to EU rapid response elements. At yesterday's Cabinet meeting, the Government agreed that I should advise my EU counterparts of Ireland's preparedness to enter into consultations with partners with a view to participation in rapid response elements. A detailed analysis of the implications for an Irish contribution to a rapid response element is ongoing and will continue over the coming months. It will cover policy considerations such as potential costs, legislative aspects, questions relating to potential multilateral partners and deployability aspects. In addition, other aspects such as training and interoperability with potential partners will be analysed. Following completion of the necessary analysis, I will return to Cabinet with proposals regarding the level of such participation. Ireland's participation in such rapid response elements will remain subject to the usual requirements of a Government decision, Dáil approval and UN authorisation.